Travel ease pleases Cuban-Americans

WASHINGTON — Cuban-American travel to Cuba just got easier under new guidelines issued by the Obama administration.

The Treasury Department confirmed that Cuban-Americans can visit extended relatives as well as close family members once a year and spend up to $179 a day without fear of prosecution, effective immediately.

The guidelines, which stem from a bill signed into law by President Barack Obama this week, signal a trend toward looser enforcement of the U.S. embargo starting with fewer travel limits.

"I know people are celebrating today," said Silvia Wilhelm of Miami, director of the Cuban American Commission for Family Rights, who wants all Americans to be able to visit Cuba.

"I'm sure we'll see an increase in travel, maybe by 20 [percent] or 25 percent," she predicted. "But the main thing is that this addresses a human need for people to see their families."

Many Cuban-Americans are eager to get started, and travel providers are gearing up to serve them.

Reinaldo Escobar, 55, of Miami plans to get on a plane to Havana as soon as possible to visit his mother in the hospital.

Under the previous rules he was forbidden from returning to Cuba for another two years.

"I have to go no matter what," said Escobar of Miami. "People should be able to visit family whenever they want."

Tico Travel in Fort Lauderdale has gotten more calls and e-mail from Cuban-Americans wanting to book travel to the island, said co-owner Rob Hodel. "With general tourism down, this is going to be a bigger piece of our business," said Hodel, who has redesigned his Cuba travel Web site and plans to hire more staff.

The actions by Congress and Treasury are expected to reverse the downward trend of Cuba travel by undoing limits imposed by former President George W. Bush in 2004. The Bush rules prevented Cuban-Americans from visiting more than once every three years for no more than 14 days or spending more than $50 a day.

The old rules were rarely enforced but still discouraged travel, according to those who operate direct flights to Cuba. There's no way to know how many Americans go to Cuba, according to the General Accountability Office, because so many people go through third countries and Cuba obscures the origins of travelers.

"Our business obviously suffered because we were obeying the law," said Francisco Aruca, chairman of the board of Marazul Charters, which books flights from Miami and New York. "We lost 40 percent of sales because of these cruel rules."

The new law blocks the government from enforcing the Bush rules. Guidelines issued by Treasury went a step further by making clear that yearly trips are considered legal. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control administers and enforces economic and trade sanctions against Cuba and other governments.

Since taking office, the president has ordered a complete review of U.S. policy on Cuba. Many observers expect him to fulfill his campaign pledge in April, just before a summit with Latin American leaders in Trinidad and Tobago.

Meanwhile, Cuban-Americans can go at least once a year.

"You will see a very big uptick in travel," said Robert Muse, a Washington attorney and expert of laws relating to Cuba. "Many Cuban-Americans traveled anyway through third countries, but now more will go just because it will be cheaper and more convenient."

Staff Writer Alexia Campbell contributed to this report from South Florida.